Art of mantua making



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheetil; F M. B. ROSS.

ART OF, MANTUA MAKING.

No. 273,160. Patented I'ebQZ'i 1883.v

ATTORNEY (No Model.) I 2 Sheets- -Sheet 2.

B. Ross. ART OF MANTUA MAKING. No. 273,160. Patented Feb. 27, 18.83.

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INVENTOR W ymzssm; A ag '01 4 wi z a M ATTORNEY NITED STATES PATENTOriana.

MARY B. ROSS, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

ART OF lVlANTUA-MAKING. V

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 273,160, dated February27, 1883 Application filed September 27, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, MARY BANKER Ross, of NewYork, county of New York, State of New York,haveinvented a new anduseful Improvement in the Art of Mantua-Making, which is fully set forthin the following specification and accompanying drawings, in which-Figure l is a front view of my improved anatomical figure-bust; Figs.'2and 3, side views, and Fig. 4 a back viewthereot.

The object of my invention is to enableladies to obtain an absolutelyperfect fitting dress without attendance upon a mantuamaker or beingsubjected to the annoyance of repeated fittings to the person andnumerous alterations before a satisfactory result is reached. Iaccomplish this by the employment of an anatomical figure-bust whichshall be an exact counterpart of the figure of the body of the lady forwhom the dress is to be made; and the novelty of my in vention is to befound in the applicationof certain novel rules of measurement, of mydiscovery, by which such a fac-simile bust may be constructed.

To obtain an exact counterfeit of a ladys person from the neck to thehips, I take a block having the general outlines of a female figure,

but no larger in anypart than the corresponding part of the person to beimitated, and then by pads of any sufficiently firm material buildthereon in all its parts, according to the following rules, until itassumes the shape and consistency which will enable the dress-maker tofit the dress thereupon instead of upon the body of her customer.

By no known rules ofmeasurement heretofore employed can a bust beproduced upon which a dress can be satisfactorily fitted.

to the bottom of the waist, which, for the purpose of explanation, maybe assumed to be fourteen inches, on the line marked A; second, from theback of the neck to the nipple, on line B, say fourteen inches third,side of the neck to the tip of the shoulder, on line 0, say six inches;place a rule or tape horizontally outward from the side of the neck anddrop it two inches; this gives the slant of the shoulder with unfailingaccuracy; fourth, from the collar-bone around the neck, on line D, sayfifteen inches; fifth, across the chest two inches below thecollar-bone, on line E, say seven inches; sixth, from a point beneaththe arm, well back, where the under arm seam ofa dress should be, to thecenter of the bust, across the bosom, on line F, say thirteen inches;seventh, around the waist, on line G,say thirtyinches; eighth, fromarmpit to waist, on line H,-say seven inches; ninth, around the hips, online I, say forty-seven inches tenth, from back of neck to bottom ofwaist, on line J, say fifteen inches; eleventh, across the shoulders, online K, say fourteen inches; twelfth, around the person, and never bythe employment of the rigid figure busts heretofore somewhat in vogue.

The human figure is elastic, and, especially in the region of the lungs,provision should be made, as far as possible, for the constant expansionand retraction incident to the proper play of the vital organs.Therefore, for a covering of the block upon which the perfect outline isto be built, I prefer a cloth composed for the most part of wool,because it is quite sure to possess sufficient elasticity, and is,moreover, of a soft, pliant, and clinging nature; or, in other words, itis a material capabio of imitating by its constituent properties thefeel and springy quality of human flesh more nearly than any other. Anarticleknown in the market as cashmere is well adapted to theserequirements. With such materiall envelop the block, leaving openingsunder the shoulder-blades and near the center of the chest-line infront. This sack or envelope should be in all its parts, except,perhaps, in the back, below the shoulder blades, slightly less than themeasurements as directed. Pieces of non-elastic tape, an inch or so inwidth, of precisely the same length as the measurements taken ashereinbefore specified, are then to be secured firmly at their ends, tothe envelope, in the same positions which the measuring-tape occupiedwhen employedugon the human figure, asindicated in the drawings. Bymeans of a spatula or other thin and flexible instrument, insert at theneck and in the openings left in the envelope or case sufficient curledhair or other elastic fibrous substance to stretch the envelope to thefull capacity of the tapes secured thereto, after which the openings areclosed by needle and thread. This will give a figure conforming to theexact proportions, so far as is desired, ot' the person who is to wearthe dress, and possessing the natural and life-like attributes ofrigidity and firmness in the back and of soft, pliant, rounded, andelastic plumpness in front which characterize the torso on an elegantfemale. When, as not infrequently happens, defects of personality are tobe concealed or counterfeit charms introduced, the skill of the artistwill find the foregoing provisions for building up the anatomical figurebust peculiarly adapted to her convenience in the accomplishment of hertask, as will readily be understood by those familiar with the art towhich my invention relates.

Iam aware that anatomical figure-busts have heretofore been constructedto facilitate mantua-making, and therefore make no claim for the use ofsuch a figure-bust, however constructed.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The herein-described improvement of the art of mantua-making, whichconsists of the following steps, namely first, taking thehereinbefore-detailed measurements of the person of the intended wearerof the mantua; secondly, shaping an anatomical figure-bust by saidmeasurements; and, thirdly, fitting the mantua to the figure-bust thusobtained.

M. B. ROSS.

Witnesses:

S. J. GORDON, J. W. RiPLEY.

